Heroes Park basketball court vandalized

Church offering reward for information on people responsible for damage

Almendra Carpizo Record Staff Writer @AlmendraCarpizo

STOCKTON — Calvary First Assembly of God's effort to build a park along Kelley Drive suffered a setback this week after the recently opened and already popular basketball court was vandalized.

Senior Pastor Peter Jalilie said someone used a rock to damage the backboard of the basket on the north end of the court. The tempered glass backboard is estimated to cost $700.

“For it to shatter like that, (the rock) had to have been thrown multiple times,” Jalilie said. “It had to be someone who really had intent.”

It’s believed the vandalism happened between 6-7:30 p.m. Monday.

Jalilie and church staff left at 6 p.m. and the basketball court was fine and being enjoyed by a group of kids, who are not believed to have caused the damage. By 7:30 p.m., there was a big pile of shattered glass and a rock was left behind.

Calvary First is offering a $200 reward for contact information on the person or people responsible. A police report has also been filed.

Jalilie said the park is for everyone and they want to keep it that way. And while the church doesn’t want to prosecute the person or people who committed the vandalism, he does want to meet and talk with whoever was responsible so they can be held accountable.

The church at 8407 Kelley Drive started the work to build a much-needed park in the north Stockton neighborhood last summer. The goal is to transform the 80,000-square-foot dirt lot into a community park that will have a field, picnic areas and a shaded amphitheater. The project is behind schedule because of all the rain the city saw this past season but in late April the basketball court was completed with help of donors and volunteers.

Jalilie said he will be contacting the manufacturer of the backboard to determine the best option for replacing it. He said some people recommended he replace the backboard with one made of metal to avoid future problems but he’s determined to offer the kids something of high quality.

A 24-hour surveillance system is being installed in about a week to deter crime and vandalism.

Many people said the idea to build a park for the kids on Kelly Drive was “ridiculous," Jalilie said. They said they didn’t deserve it and that they would just destroy it but this project is about elevating the neighborhood, he added.

“You don’t defeat hate with hate,” he said, adding how he’s inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. “We’re not deterred. We won’t allow it to deter our vision.”